As is known, a Paul trap is a type of quadrupole ion trap that uses static direct current (DC) and RF oscillating electric fields to trap ions. As such, it is an important component of a trapped ion quantum computer that uses atomic ions as the basic building blocks. To effectively trap ions, a sufficiently high RF voltage (50-300V) must be applied to the Paul trap.
One way known in the art to drive an RF Paul trap for atomic ions employs a helical resonator to boost RF voltage at a target frequency (5-1000 MHz). Unfortunately, such helical resonators are generally bulky, mechanically unstable, and exhibit undesirable drift(s). Furthermore—given their bulk—contemporary helical resonators are largely incompatible with cryogenic ion trap configurations and as such must include undesirable cabling to the trap resulting in resistive loss(es).
Alternative methods including tank circuits have been explored in the art. Such methods and circuits however, have only exhibited very limited frequencies (i.e., 5-10 MHz) and as such have not proven useful for light ions employed applications including quantum computing.